Five charity groups in North-West London have received grants of £120,922 between them.

Using money raised by HeathHope CIC, through The Health Lottery, grants have been awarded by People’s Health Trust through Active Communities, a funding programme which invests in local people and groups in communities with great ideas to make their communities even better.

The five charities celebrating the funding include:

• Barnet Lone Parent Centre - £21,326– This new two year project aims to run weekly activity sessions in Underhill Baptist for lone parents with dependent children. Each Sunday session will include art/craft activities and visiting speakers suitable for the whole family to enjoy. The project will tackle the issues of: social and emotional isolation, mental ill-heath and general community and neighbourhood work.

• Marylebone Bangladesh Society - £27,126 - This new two year project will run physical activity sessions and women only healthy cook and eat sessions for people from Black and Minority Ethnic communities, particularly the Bangladeshi community. There will be two sessions every week and activities will take place at the Marylebone Bangladesh Society Centre. Through a steering committee, participants will be involved in the day to day running of the project.

• Tell It Parents Action Group - £28,972 - This is a new two year project to develop and extend the existing drop-in service for parents in the Queens Park area of Westminster. Taking place at Tell It Parents Action Group, there will be 10 hours per week of activity including an English language conversation group, black parents support group, community choir. The project’s focus is on social or emotional isolation, race, and low educational attainment or at risk of poor educational attainment.

• Third Sector Media - £6,854 - This is a new one year project to run creative media sessions for young people to raise awareness and understanding of their issues within the wider community and to promote community cohesion in the wards of Queens Park, Harrow Road and Westbourne. The project’s focus is: mental ill-health, social or emotional isolation, and general community and neighbourhood work.

• Westminster Bangladeshi Welfare Trust - £36,644- This development of an existing project will deliver exercise and fitness sessions and a drop-in club over two years in order to help relieve sickness and reduce isolation of older people (in particular from the Black and Minority Ethnic community) at Dryburgh Hall in South Westminster. Participants will have the opportunity to influence the design and delivery of the project through a steering group

Chris Lunn, Director of HealthHope, said: “The projects, supported using money raised by HealthHope, are extremely valuable to a wide range of individuals across this region; we look forward to hearing more about how these initiatives are supporting people to live longer healthier lives.”

John Hume, Chief Executive of People’s Health Trust, said: “We are delighted to be investing in these local organisations with great ideas to make their communities even better places to grow, live, work and age.”

Active Communities is for community groups and not-for-profit organisations with an income of less than £350,000 a year that are seeking investment of between £5,000 and £50,000 a year, for projects lasting up to two years. For more information visit www.peopleshealthtrust.org.uk.